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LendingClub Launches Home Improvement Financing; Begins Underwriting and Originating Loans Through Inaugural Partnership with Wisetack

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SAN FRANCISCO, April 27, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — LendingClub Corporation (NYSE: LC) today announced it has started underwriting and originating home improvement loans through its inaugural partnership with Wisetack, a platform embedded with over 40,000 contractors and growing.

LendingClub brings its expertise, proprietary credit models, and bank balance sheet directly to the point of sale for consumers seeking convenient and affordable financing for home improvement projects.

“We’re excited to begin originating loans within the $500 billion home improvement market, where we have distinct advantages over incumbents and a meaningful opportunity for growth,” said Steve Mattics, Chief Lending Officer at LendingClub. “This space is distinctly on brand for us. By combining our advanced underwriting and credit decisioning with Wisetack’s embedded platform, we’re able to clear the way for people to make meaningful home improvement projects happen while also helping contractors grow their own businesses. It’s the type of win-win we’re always striving for.”

Through the Wisetack platform, loans up to $65,000 are originated by LendingClub and offered seamlessly within contractor and merchant workflows. LendingClub’s underwriting system, which is informed by more than 150 billion cells of proprietary data, enables real-time credit decisions and supports access to larger loan amounts with transparent terms. The benefits of the partnership are clear:

Homeowners get instant offers and real-time approvals that allow them to make their projects happen, andContractors get immediate funding and better close rates, especially on larger projects.

“LendingClub’s move to originate loans strengthens the financing experience across our platform, helping more contractors offer flexible payment options that enable homeowners to move forward with larger projects,” said Bobby Tzekin, Founder and CEO of Wisetack.

Reinforced by LendingClub’s investment in Wisetack, both companies plan to continue scaling the partnership, expanding the range of LendingClub-originated financing solutions available across the platform.

“We’ve been really impressed with Wisetack’s team and platform,” said Scott Sanborn, LendingClub CEO, “so impressed that we have also made an investment in the company to help accelerate our future together.”

The U.S. home improvement market represents an estimated $500 billion in annual spending, driven by aging housing inventory and a continued preference among homeowners to renovate rather than relocate. LendingClub’s expansion into the home improvement financing vertical is a natural extension of its point-of-sale financing expertise. This represents a powerful new opportunity to attract, delight, and engage consumers in moments that matter – and represents a perfect example of how LendingClub’s members use credit responsibly to make it happen.

About LendingClub

LendingClub Bank (soon to be Happen Bank) is a digital bank built for the Motivated Middle: high-FICO, high-income, digitally savvy consumers actively managing their financial lives. Our difference? We make it easy for them to access award-winning products that help them keep more of what they earn and earn more on what they save. Our products are aligned by design to reward our five million members when they take positive financial steps, like saving regularly or making loan payments on time.

Our success is fueled by our advanced credit underwriting, a proprietary technology platform engineered for innovation, and a marketplace bank model that drives value for members, loan investors, and shareholders alike. The result is affordable credit, meaningful value, and a trusted banking relationship delivered consistently and profitably at scale.

As we look to our next chapter, we’re choosing a name that reflects why we exist: to clear the way for our members to make it happen. Learn more at https://www.meethappen.com.

LendingClub Corporation (NYSE: LC) is the parent company and operator of LendingClub Bank, National Association, Member FDIC. Loans originated pursuant to the partnership with Wisetack are underwritten and originated by LendingClub Bank. For more information about LendingClub, visit https://www.lendingclub.com.

About Wisetack

Wisetack is the leading embedded platform for consumer financing for home services and home improvement, with presence in other verticals such as elective medical and car repair. Wisetack partners with software companies to embed consumer financing options into their customer-facing applications through simple APIs. Wisetack’s extensive network of merchants rely on Wisetack to offer their customers affordable pay-over-time options at point of sale.

Founded in 2018 in San Francisco by an experienced team of leaders in the financial technology industry, Wisetack is backed by leading VCs such as Greylock Partners, Quadrille Capital, Insight Partners, and Bain Capital Ventures. Payment options through Wisetack are provided by its lending partners and subject to credit approval. Terms may vary.

Safe Harbor Statement

Some of the statements in this press release, including statements regarding the growth and benefits of our partnership with Wisetack, are “forward-looking statements.” Words such as “plan”, “delivers” and similar expressions may identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements may contain these identifying words. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated by these forward-looking statements include: our ability to develop and operate a compelling offering in the home improvement lending space, macroeconomic conditions, loan demand and performance, and those factors set forth in the section titled “Risk Factors” in LendingClub Corporation’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, as well as in its subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Actual results or events could differ materially from the plans, intentions and expectations disclosed in forward-looking statements, and you should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. We do not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

CONTACTS:

LendingClub
Media Contact: Press@lendingclub.com
For Investors: IR@lendingclub.com

Wisetack
Media Contact: Press@wisetack.com

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SOURCE LendingClub Corporation

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Zifo Transforms Ontology Engineering with AI-Powered Intelligent Automation

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Advanced AI solution speeds up ontology creation by 80%, generating structured, interoperable knowledge models for science-driven organizations.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. and CAMBRIDGE, England, April 30, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Zifo, the leading global enabler of AI and data-driven enterprise informatics for science-driven organizations, has developed an Intelligent Automation solution for Ontology Engineering, which is designed to seamlessly generate structured, interoperable knowledge models while accelerating ontology creation by 80%.

Overcoming the Bottlenecks of Manual Ontology Creation

Manual ontology creation in the biopharma industry has traditionally been a time-consuming process that requires specialized expertise. Organizations frequently struggle with semantic ambiguity, complex integration challenges, and limited scalability, resulting in workflows that can take weeks to complete. Zifo’s AI-powered automation tackles these challenges head-on by eliminating 80% of the manual work through automated class generation, description creation, and precise IRI mapping.

Addressing the Complexities of Semantic Knowledge

Developing comprehensive knowledge models often demands deep domain expertise to define relationships and align terminology. Zifo’s intelligent solution overcomes this by providing an AI-guided workflow featuring an intuitive interface, meaning specialized ontology engineering knowledge is no longer required. By leveraging LLM-powered generation, the solution creates precise definitions with a deep understanding of domain-specific context, while generating standardized synonyms and establishing controlled vocabulary alignment to eliminate inconsistent terminology.

A Solution Designed for Scalable Scientific Data Modeling

The AI-powered solution addresses critical format compatibility and integration points in ontology management:

Seamless Integration: Automated mapping connects directly to established ontologies, including NCIT, CHEBI, OBI, and EFO, via BioPortal and OLS APIs.Massive Scalability: Parallel processing and batch operations empower teams to execute large-scale ontology projects without performance limitations.Automated Hierarchies: The AI autonomously generates semantic relationships and parent-child hierarchies based on domain context and predefined relation vocabularies.Format Compatibility: The solution produces direct OWL/RDF exports with proper URIs, ensuring seamless downstream integration.

Unique Features include:

Multi-Source Integration: The solution combines BioPortal, OLS, and EMBL-EBI APIs to guarantee comprehensive ontology coverage.Intelligent Ranking System: The system uses AI-powered relevance scoring and justification for precise ontology mappings.Precise IRI Mapping: It ensures that each generated class is linked to the correct IRI, directly promoting semantic web compatibility.Human-in-the-Loop Design: The solution automates repetitive tasks while maintaining vital expert oversight.End-to-End Workflow: Users are guided through a complete pipeline, from initial domain knowledge input straight to exportable OWL files.Visual Knowledge Graph: An interactive graph visualization allows for intuitive relationship exploration and validation.Multi-Format Exports: Provides seamless export options in CSV, OWL, or HTML Ontograph formats for downstream use, collaboration, and visualization.

Strategic Value Across the Scientific Chain

This solution breaks down the traditional barriers of data structuring. Built on a robust backend of Python, LangChain, and leading LLM models, alongside a frontend framework using Next.js 15 and Cytoscape.js for graph visualization, the solution is highly adaptable. Furthermore, future optimization enhancements will include provisions for uploading user-defined classes or semi-ready ontologies.

About Zifo

Zifo is the leading global enabler of AI and data-driven enterprise informatics for science-driven organizations. With expertise spanning research, development, manufacturing, and clinical domains, Zifo serves a diverse range of industries including Pharma, Biotech, Chemicals, Food and Beverage, and more. Trusted by over 190 organizations worldwide, Zifo is the partner of choice for advancing digital scientific innovation.

For more information, visit www.zifornd.comhttps://zifornd.com/practical-ai-blueprints/

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2731415/Zifo_Technologies_Logo.jpg

 

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/zifo-transforms-ontology-engineering-with-ai-powered-intelligent-automation-302758975.html

SOURCE Zifo Technologies

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UNC-Chapel Hill establishes ‘Carolina in the Capital’ with new Washington, D.C. office

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CHAPEL HILL, N.C., April 30, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has opened a new office in Washington, D.C., establishing an expanded presence for the University in the nation’s capital and creating exciting opportunities for students, faculty, staff and alumni.

Located at 101 Constitution Avenue NW, the 10,861-square-foot space – coined “Carolina in the Capital” – will support a variety of functions, including educational programming for undergraduate and graduate students, alumni relations and engagement with government partners.

As a leading R1 university, UNC-Chapel Hill annually attracts more than $1.6 billion to the state’s economy to fund research that creates a better quality of life for all its citizens. More than 60% of UNC-Chapel Hill’s total research funding comes from federal sponsors with the majority of that federal funding coming from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which is based in the Washington area.

“Carolina in the Capital is a state-of-the-art facility that reflects our commitment to creating experiential learning opportunities for our students and faculty,” said Chancellor Lee H. Roberts. “The space is designed as an immersive learning environment where students can translate classroom knowledge into hands-on experience, which has never been more important. The facility also strengthens our ability to support engagement between our staff, alumni, policymakers and partners.”

Supporting students participating in Carolina’s Washington-based academic programs is a priority. For years, students and faculty have relied on temporary or borrowed spaces across the city. The new office provides a permanent home where students can gather, learn and build community while living and studying in Washington. A robust schedule of classes and events will fill the space throughout the year.

The Washington, D.C. region is home to the largest concentration of out-of-state Carolina alumni anywhere in the country. The new office creates a dedicated space to strengthen those connections and support networking, mentorship, professional development and community-building among D.C.-based Tar Heels.

The space will also serve as a platform to bring Carolina’s research and academic expertise into closer conversation with policymakers, industry leaders and member organizations. Carolina is the nation’s 11th largest university in the country based on research volume with primary federal funding coming from NIH and the National Science Foundation (NSF), both based in the D.C. area. Carolina is a proud member of the Association of American Universities (AAU) and the Association of Public & Land Grant Universities (APLU), which are both based in Washington.

The office is funded entirely through the UNC-Chapel Hill Foundation and does not use any state appropriations.

You can view additional photos of the space here.

Media Contact: UNC Media Relations, 919-445-8555, mediarelations@unc.edu

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/unc-chapel-hill-establishes-carolina-in-the-capital-with-new-washington-dc-office-302758250.html

SOURCE University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Office of Communications

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Investing.com Acquires Stonki to Accelerate Its Entry into the Agentic AI Era

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The acquisition strengthens Investing.com’s AI capabilities, advancing a next-generation research assistant that can analyze markets, generate insights, and guide investors in real time

NEW YORK, April 30, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Investing.com, one of the world’s largest financial platforms used by more than 60 million investors each month, today announced the acquisition of Stonki, an AI-powered investing assistant designed to help traders turn ideas into structured, actionable trading plans.

The move marks a major step in the company’s evolution toward agentic AI, strengthening its ability to deliver faster, deeper, and more actionable market insights to a growing base of more than 300,000 paying subscribers across its InvestingPro suite, the company’s premium subscription offering for advanced market data, tools, and AI-driven insights.

Over the past 12 months, nearly 3 million users have used WarrenAI, Investing.com’s AI-powered financial research assistant launched last year, to perform market analysis, making AI a central entry point into the platform’s ecosystem. With the addition of Stonki, the company is moving beyond traditional AI tools toward agentic systems that can proactively guide users through the investment process.

“We’re entering the age of agentic AI, where the technology moves beyond just answering questions to actively helping investors think, analyze, and act,” said Omer Shvili, CEO of Investing.com. “Bringing Stonki.ai into the fold accelerates our goal of building an agentic platform that will serve as a 24/7 analyst for our users. We are developing this to be more than just a tool; it will be a partner that identifies opportunities, tracks unfolding situations, and surfaces trade ideas even when the user isn’t active—giving our users the kind of edge that was previously only available to professional investors.”

Founded in 2025, Stonki is developing a new category of ‘agentic’ AI for investing, enabling users to turn investment ideas into fully defined strategies with entry and exit conditions, risk management rules, and continuous monitoring.

“We started Stonki because, as investors and traders ourselves, we knew how much time and focus it takes to stay on top of the market and properly manage a day trade, a swing trade, an investment idea, or a portfolio,” said Ulas Bilgenoglu and Itay Verkh, co-founders of Stonki. “We set out to build AI that could carry part of that load by continuously monitoring the market, turning ideas into structured strategies, and helping users make better decisions with clear entry and exit conditions, disciplined risk management, and ongoing tracking. Joining Investing.com gives us the scale, data, reach, and strong AI foundation to accelerate that vision. Together, we can create an experience where AI helps users stay ahead of the market, manage risk, and act with greater confidence.”

The acquisition expands Investing.com’s AI capabilities across both technical and fundamental investing workflows. Stonki’s technology is built around persistent, real-time intelligence, continuously monitoring markets, tracking user-defined strategies, and alerting investors when conditions align, rather than relying on one-off prompts or static analysis.

For active traders, the platform is evolving into a real-time analysis engine designed to support high-frequency decision-making with precision and speed. For long-term investors, it is becoming a central hub for research, enabling users to evaluate opportunities, set personalized alerts, and monitor portfolios based on their individual investment strategies.

Users will be able to define specific conditions, such as a stock crossing a long-term moving average, and have the AI continuously monitor the market, analyze relevant signals, and surface actionable insights in real time. The system will also review portfolios on an ongoing basis, helping investors avoid potential losses and uncover new opportunities aligned with their strategy.

This latest step builds on Investing.com’s broader strategy of expanding its AI-powered suite, including WarrenAI, ProPicks AI, and its recently launched AI Chart Analysis, all aimed at delivering faster, more accurate and more actionable insights to investors.

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/investingcom-acquires-stonki-to-accelerate-its-entry-into-the-agentic-ai-era-302756588.html

SOURCE Investing.com

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